Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Crochet Sock Yarn Blanket: The Pattern

After posting pictures of my progress with the Sock Yarn Blanket, I've been asked about the pattern.

The good news about this is you only need a basic knowledge of crochet to work it. Perhaps get an expert friend to start it, but the rest you can do on your own, I promise. As long as you know how to chain and work a double crochet, you'll be good.  There are excellent crochet tutorials on StitchDiva's site. If you're completely new to crochet, start there with the chain stitch and double crochet.

For my blanket, I used sock yarn (I may have mentioned that) and a 3.5mm/E-4 crochet hook.  But you can use anything.  Just make sure the yarns being used are all roughly the same weight, and use a crochet hook a size or two larger than you would knitting needles for that yarn.

Using my non-professional crochet pattern writing skills, here's the Granny Square Pattern/Tutorial:

START: Chain 6.


Join the chain into a round with a slip stitch.


FIRST TIER: [Double crochet three times into the hole of the round. Chain 2.] 4 times. Join to the start of the round with a slip stitch.


This gives you four groups of three double crochets around the round, with holes in between.  These holes are the corners:



SECOND TIER: Chain 2. Double crochet twice into the chain space in the row below just at the foot of that little chain. This is the first corner.  (The chain 2 counts as the first double crochet to make a group of three.  You're always working in groups of three double crochets.)

[Chain 1. Double crochet three times into the corner 'gap' of the previous round. Chain 2 (for the corner). Double crochet three times again into the corner 'gap' of the previous round.] 3 times.

Double crochet three times into the final corner 'gap' of the previous round. Use a slip stitch to join this to the top of the double crochet group where you started the round.



Again, you have four corners, and then each side has a gap between the groups of double crochets:



As you work a tier, you will add two more gaps on each side, between the corners.

THIRD TIER: Chain 2. Double crochet twice into the chain space in the row below just at the foot of that little chain. This is the first corner.

[Chain 1. Double crochet three times into the 'gap' of the previous round. Chain 1. Double crochet three times into the corner 'gap' of the previous round. Chain 2 (for the corner). Double crochet three times again into the corner 'gap' of the previous round.] 3 times.

You should be at the final side now.

Chain 1. Double crochet three times into the 'gap' of the previous round. Chain 1. Double crochet three times into the final corner 'gap' of the previous round. Use a slip stitch to join this to the top of the double crochet group where you started the round.

CONTINUING: From here, every tier is the same...
Chain 2. Double crochet twice into the chain space in the row below just at the foot of that little chain. This is the first corner.

Work across the sides as follows:
*[Chain 1. Double crochet three times into the 'gap' of the previous round. Chain 1.] Repeat until only the 'corner gap' remains.
Double crochet three times into the corner 'gap' of the previous round. Chain 2 (for the corner). Double crochet three times again into the corner 'gap' of the previous round.]
Work from * twice more.

Work across the final side: [Chain 1. Double crochet three times into the 'gap' of the previous round. Chain 1.] Repeat until only the corner gap remains.

Double crochet three times into the final corner 'gap' of the previous round. Use a slip stitch to join this to the top of the double crochet group where you started the round.

And then keep going. And going. And going.  Until the blanket is big enough, or you're out of sock yarn leftovers.  (Ha!)

An excellent more detailed Granny Square Tutorial can be found on Ravelry, here.

3 comments:

banana said...

Yay! Was trawling patterns on Ravelry to find something similar, but it's always better direct from the source.

Beth Graham said...

Great minds think alike. I really must post a photo of my completed Great-Granny Square Blanket on Ravelry. As it continually amuses me to say, "it's one mother of a granny!"

Clea Stagnitti said...

Wow - great directions for the blanket! Thanks, thank you and my lame crochet skills and large stash of leftover sock yarn thank you.